New Delhi, 28 November 2017 –Dassault Aviation, Safran and Thales, which together make up Rafale International, has explained its role in Make-in-India initiative through the offsets programme related to the purchase of 36 Rafale fighters, an acquisition which is under intense politically scrutiny in the run up the Gujrat Assembly polls.

The Rafale international was invited by the Centre Val de Loire Regional Council and AEROCENTRE to the aeronautical forum being held in Tours, to present its creation of an industrial aeronautical sector in India.

The main Opposition party Congress has alleged that the Modi Government paid higher price to the French company than the previous government was negotiating. The Party also claimed that a particular business group was being benefitted in the name of offsets related to the contract.

To an audience of more than fifty French SMEs attending this Business to Business event, the Rafale International partners presented their contribution to the Make in India policy as part of the Rafale Offset program and presented the potential opportunities for French SMEs to also invest and set up production activities in India.

“By reinforcing Franco-Indian cooperation regarding SMEs in the Defense aeronautical sector and by encouraging and supporting French SMEs coming to India as part of the offsets program for the Rafale Contract signed in September 2016, this initiative will help set up an industrial ecosystem that will be of benefit to both French and Indian partners under Prime Minister Modi’s “Make in India” initiative,” the Company said in a press statement.

“The contacts made and the discussions held during this event defined a roadmap for the French SMEs, to help them join the Dassault Aviation, Safran and Thales global supply chain, thus opening the door to them for new international market opportunities,” the statement said.